It is no secret that ATV accidents are particularly dangerous. In fact, the risk of being involved in an accident while riding an ATV has prompted theConsumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) to dedicate a portion of its website to ATV safety (atvsafety.gov).Some behaviors can make ATV-riding riskier than others, and the CPSC lists several ways to reduce the risk, including use of helmets and restrictionsfor riders under the age of 16.
Each year, an average of 144 children die in ATV accidents. In most cases, it is because a young, inexperienced driver loses control of the vehicle orbecause a child passenger is thrown from or pinned under the vehicle in an accident.
Last fall, a 2-year-old girl died in an ATV accident in Mayes County. Now, her mother is criminally charged in connection with the toddler's death.
Prosecutors say Angela Michelle Russell, 34, was under the influence of alcohol and drugs when she took her daughter for an ATV ride down a county roadlast fall. They say Russell had her toddler daughter strapped to her chest in a front-facing carrier, and that the little girl did not have a helmetas they rode along. Investigators say when the ATV crashed, both Russell and the toddler were thrown from the vehicle, and that the mother landed onthe daughter, who was still strapped to her body. The little girl died in the accident.
Highway Patrol troopers responding to the scene say they noticed the smell of alcohol on the mother's breath. They say she admitted to drinking "a coupleof cinnamon shots a few hours before the crash." Blood testing after the accident showed the woman's blood alcohol concentration (BAC) to be 0.173,more than twice the legal limit. She also allegedly tested positive for barbituates.
The woman was charged with second degree murder in the commission of a felony, and she pleaded not guilty to the charge earlier this week.
Oklahoma law defines second degree murder in 21 O.S. � 701.8 as ahomicide that occurs under one of two conditions:
Second degree murder is punishable by 10 years to life in prison.
A recent study by the CPSC evaluated multi-passenger ATV fatality accidentsbetween 2005 and 2007. The agency identified 419 fatal accidents in which two people--a driver and a passenger--were riding the ATV. In these typesof accidents, the driver was the most likely to be the fatally injured rider (52.7 percent). However, the passenger was more likely to be the fatallyinjured rider if he or she was not properly seated on the ATV: not on the seat at all, seated in front of the driver, or held in the driver's lap.
The CPSC lists several tips for safe ATV riding. Among them are the admonition to always wear a helmet and to never let a child under 16 ride an adult-sizedATV.
If the facts of the case are as prosecutors claim, the accident that claimed the 2-year-old was fraught with risk: DUI, lack of helmets, an improperlyseated passenger, and a child on an adult-sized ATV are all risk factors for serious injury or death.
